Member Contributer chris2992 Posted March 26, 2006 Member Contributer Share Posted March 26, 2006 Well after getting the VFR my lady wanted a backrest so she felt more comfortable. However I just couldn't justify $250 on the corbin piece. So I decided to make my own. Started off with some 5/8" square bar, and some 3/16" flat plate steel. I then cut the design into the steel for the backrest and cut about a 12" length of the square stock. Then I put the square stock into the corbin seat slot and had my lady sit on the bike so that I could see what angle to bend the square stock at. Turned out to be about 10 degrees for her, but see what your passenger wants. 0 degrees is almost straight up FWIW. I then put the flat plate in a roller and rolled a bit of a curve into the flat plate, then welded together. Her brother-in-law owns a hot rod upholstery shop, so he ordered the CF look vinyl to match the seat and covered it for me. Due to the awkward shape of the backrest, he had a bit of a pooch where he finished the bottom of the cover, but for free I wasn't expecting much. Once I got it back, I put it in the corbin slot and punched a marker spot in the square stock where I drilled and tapped for a 1/4-20 bolt to secure it in place. I use a thumb screw, lock washer and a fender washer to spread the load and not crack the seat pan and be able to take off with out tools. This setup has worked great for us and hopefully it can save you a bit of $$ too. S2400002.JPG DSC00100.JPG She loves the new set up and says that it makes her feel much more at ease while on the bike. I sat on the passenger area and put all of my weight on the back rest and I couldn't budge it, sturdy as a rock. Fabrication wise it took about 2 hrs to make, so with minimal time and skill you too can have a cheep backrest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted March 26, 2006 Author Member Contributer Share Posted March 26, 2006 P.S. I had posted this before, but it got pruned, so here it is again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Cdn Arctic Posted March 27, 2006 Member Contributer Share Posted March 27, 2006 Well Done..............Where were you 15 years ago when I paid the Corbin Masked Bandits :pissed: $400 for a pair o'backrests! Great product but 2 backrests shouldn't equal the price of a seat!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer adamf18 Posted March 28, 2006 Member Contributer Share Posted March 28, 2006 I went the other way, I made the seat uncomfortable and my wife decided to get her own bike and ride. We have so much more fun now. Great job by the way, so many people wont even attempt something like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted March 28, 2006 Author Member Contributer Share Posted March 28, 2006 I went the other way, I made the seat uncomfortable and my wife decided to get her own bike and ride. We have so much more fun now. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I wish, I tried to get my lady to ride my Yamaha Seca II before I sold it and she wouldn't. Now she won't get close to the VFR. The sad thing is that she can ride a scooter very well, and a bike is so much easier to ride with the proper training. I am going to sign us up for the MSF class together, that training should be good for a passenger too, + how much fun will the beginner class be second time through and 25k miles later. :pissed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Aardvark892 Posted March 28, 2006 Share Posted March 28, 2006 Very professional looking backrest. I'd purchased a Mustang with the double backrests for my VTX1300 (that I no longer have), but for $600 it wasn't as comfortable as they'd like you to think. Not much better than the stock seat, honestly. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer adamf18 Posted March 28, 2006 Member Contributer Share Posted March 28, 2006 I wish, I tried to get my lady to ride my Yamaha Seca II before I sold it and she wouldn't. Now she won't get close to the VFR. The sad thing is that she can ride a scooter very well, and a bike is so much easier to ride with the proper training. I am going to sign us up for the MSF class together, that training should be good for a passenger too, + how much fun will the beginner class be second time through and 25k miles later. :pissed: <{POST_SNAPBACK}> the MSF course will be great for her. I teach it and most of my students are women. In my opion, they learn must more than men do. And they tend do better in the class. Its a very confident building course too. Good luck with her getting on her own bike. But be carefull, my wife wants another bigger bike, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted March 28, 2006 Author Member Contributer Share Posted March 28, 2006 the MSF course will be great for her. I teach it and most of my students are women. In my opion, they learn must more than men do. And they tend do better in the class. Its a very confident building course too. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I took the class too, and agree fully. Hope I can get her convinced to do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer SAFE-T Posted March 28, 2006 Member Contributer Share Posted March 28, 2006 My wife decided to get her own bike and ride. We have so much more fun now. I don't take a lot of passengers, but I really enjoy it. I also like being a passenger. :unsure: I have a Corbin backrest but I don't like it's near-vertical position. Your handmade rest with the 10 degree angle makes a lot more sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest speedyg Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 Beautifully done! Question, what rack are you using for the tail bag and what saddle bags are those? Thanks Charles -- Algonquin, IL 02VFR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted April 4, 2006 Author Member Contributer Share Posted April 4, 2006 The rack is a Chris2992 Special. I made it out of flat and angle aluminum bent to shape. It bolts to the underside of the inner fender, which I had to reinforce to the subframe. It works great, but I am currently making another version out of tubular steel to sort of copy the 5 star rack so that I can have a system for just saddle bags and one for saddle bags and top case. Link to 5 star rack. The luggage is all nelson rigg, and I love it, works great and build quality is second to none IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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